The Riceball and the Rat
by lady ryu
Summary: a American exchange student goes to Yuki's school and this is what happens...


The Riceball and the Rat

A Fruits Basket fanfic

By Lady Ryu

Chapter One

Tohru woke up to the bright sunlight peering through the blinds. The girl wiped her eyes and half-dazed she wandered to the bathroom and stumbled on Yuki who had just stepped out of the shower.

"Oh I'm sorry Yuki. I didn't see anything!"

Being half dazed as well, the boy quietly replied after wrapping a towel around himself.

"I'm sorry, Ms. Honda. I didn't mean to take so long."

"Oh it's not your fault Yuki." Tohru said.

She noticed Yuki seemed a little down and depressed the past week. He didn't even bother to reply to Kyo's taunts. After a quick breakfast, Yuki, Kyo, and Tohru walked to class. The Prince Yuki Fanclub was keeping a close watch on their beloved prey. The bell rang and the rabid fangirls ran quickly to class after the death glare from Hana. They all walked to their respective classrooms and the teacher stood and announced the class.

A new girl caught everyone's attention.

"Good morning class, this is EJ, she is from America and she will be here for the remainder of the school year.

The girl smiled and waved.

"Hey everyone, it' s nice to meet you all."

A couple of boys elbowed each other and grinned.

"Beyonce, eh?"

Yuki shook his head. She looked nothing like the singer from Destiny's Child. She was much shorter and had glasses. Her hair was shoulder length and dark and she was cute like Tohru.

"Why don't you take a seat by Yuki." She said pointing to the boy.

"Arigato, sensei." EJ replied and she sat down by Yuki. He glanced over and their eyes met, he blushed slightly.

"Hello," he said in English, "I am Yuki. Yuki Sohma."

She held out her hand and he shook it.

"Hi, I'm EJ. Nice to meet you."

She actually knew a surprising amount of Japanese. Mostly in part because she had been taught it since middle school. After class, he asked to walk her to her next class since they had the same class together and Tohru ran up to introduce herself.

"Hi I'm Tohru Honda, nice to meet you. Why don't you join us for lunch?"

EJ smiled.

"I'd like that very much, thank you."

After class finished for the day, Yuki asked to walk her back to her apartment. Tohru noticed that Yuki had been spending a lot of time with the new girl and that his spirits had somehow been lifted since her arrival. She was happy he had found a new friend.

"Thank you for walking me home." EJ said smiling.

Yuki blushed and bowed.

"I'll see you tomorrow Ms. EJ."

"Bye," she waved as he walked away.

"O little brother!" came a familiar voice and Yuki froze in his steps and slowly turned around.

"A-Ayame?" Yuki asked surprised, "W-what are you doing here?"

His big brother chuckled and replied,

"Well I was just strolling down the neighborhood and I saw you walking with that adorable little girl and— ""

Yuki glared at him and opened his mouth to speak but EJ spoke,

"Oh Yuki is this your brother?"

Ayame flocked over to introduce himself.

"Oh what a cute girl you are! I have a dress that would look perfect on you! Oh where are my manners? I am Ayame Sohma, Yuki's big brother. It's a pleasure to meet you my dear. Oh I would love to take you to my shop. You scream of inspiration…"

Ayame grabbed her hand and began to skip away towards the shop.

"Hold it!" Yuki said sternly, "You aren't taking Ms. EJ anywhere!"

Ayame put an arm around his younger brother.

"What's with the sour face? I am just happy to meet your new friend and she was so cute, I couldn't help myself…"

Yuki gave Aya the death stare.

"I don't mind going Sohma-san. You're brother owns a dress shop and I'd love to see the dresses he made."

"Really?" Yuki questioned.

EJ nodded and beamed.

"Yup, let's go!"

Mene greeted them warmly at the shop and whisked EJ to the back room so she could try on a dress.

"I hope you have one in my size. I'm kinda big around the top and the middle."

Mene smiled.

"No problem at all. We can adjust it if need be."

"Yay!" EJ exclaimed, "I want to buy some fabric to take back to America too!"

Mene nodded.

"Okay, we'll even give you a discount price since you are friends of Yuki and Aya-san."

Meanwhile, Yuki and Aya were sipping tea.

"Oh dear brother, tell me how have you been?"

Yuki thought for a minute, he had been having a good week before EJ had come to Japan. He considered himself lucky to meet her, she somehow struck a chord in him, much like Tohru had. This made him depressed because he wanted to be close to her, but his heart was ripping at the seams when he realized that being of the zodiac, she might reject him and that they would never be able to have a normal relationship. Ayame nudged him on the shoulder.

"She is an adorable girl and from another country too! It's so amazing…"

Yuki laughed at how comical his big brother appeared to be. He stopped when he notice EJ entering the room. His heart pounded. She was beautiful and he was left speechless.

"Oh! How wonderful! A beautiful peach! An angel so daintly placed in my creation, I am so fortunate…" Ayame continued on a tangent.

"Oh he can be long-winded sometimes!" Mene commented on her boss's display of exuberance.

EJ laughed and grinned at Yuki.

"Are you okay Soma Yuki-san?" she asked a little worried.

He smiled back.

"Oh I am fine, I'm just a little tired."

"Okay I'll go change and I can take you back to my apartment for dinner if you'd like."

"Oh really, it's nothing. I'll be alright."

Yuki responded.

EJ changed and Yuki walked her back to her apartment and Yuki then went back to Shigure's. The moonlight made his violet eyes glow. The trees rustled and he sensed an all to familiar presence. The wind turned cold and Yuki looked up to see the dark and ominous presence of Akito. Akito rarely went out, but today he made an exception. Akito smiled and said.

"Oh Yuki, my dear, sweet, and lonely Yuki. Aren't you glad to see me? I came out all this way just to see you. Despite my condition, I could catch a rather nasty cold. But you see how deeply and how much I care for you."

Yuki frowned and glared at Akito.

"What do you want?" he asked.

"For you to stop seeing that new girl outside of school. It would be unfortunate if something were to happen to her. You know falling in love with her would be terrible on your behalf. You would be so lonely when she goes back home to America where she belongs."

Yuki clenched his fists.

"How can you say such things? We are nothing more than friends. Just friends."

Yuki was so angry he ran away. Akito laughed and went back to the Sohma house. Yuki ran to his room and fell to floor. He hugged his knees.

"Why does it always hurt so much? I hate to be alone! Why can't I be with the one I love?" he asked himself.

The next morning, Tohru made breakfast and Shigure teased his editor over the phone.

Yuki and Kyo walked with Tohru to class.

"What's wrong Yuki-kun?" Tohru asked.

Yuki smiled.

"Oh nothing."

"Ohaiyo!" EJ said waving to Tohru, Kyo, and Yuki.


End file.
